Book-end



Aug. 24, 1965 R. J. KORESKA BOOK-END Filed 001',- 1, 1962 FIG. 2

INVENTOR. RUDOLF JOHAN KORESKA m: M7/M ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,202,298 EOOK-END Rudolf Johan Koreslra, Hvirlegaard, Birkerod, Denmark Filed Oct. 1, 1962, Ser. No. 227,412 6 Claims. (Cl. 211-484) such a book-end is to be moved it is necessary to slightly.

compress the looped spring band so that said pressure into the grooves is relieved because frictional resistance against displacement would otherwise be too great. This method of operation is difficult and is unpractical because a book cannot be close to the looped band when the latter is pressed tgether. Therefore it is difiicult to adjust the book-end in relation to the books that are to be sup ported. If the looped bands spring force is not great the book-end will not be held sufficiently in the grooves but is liable to assume an unwanted tilted position.

The object of the invention is to provide a book-end, oi the kind described, where an easy and practical method of operation is obtained. This is obtained, according to the invention, by providing guide members which have a length that is approximately a third of the distance between the grooves on the underside of the steel shelf. If pressure for displacement is applied to the book-end in the proximity of the grooves, i.e., just under the shelf, there will be no tendency to self-locking owing to the aforementioned proportions of the guide members and the spacing between the grooves. A lateral pressure applied to the lower portion of the book-end which projects downward, on the other hand, will result in selflocking or at least in a considerable frictional resistance against displacement of the guide members in the grooves. It is thus achieved that lateral pressure from books that are on a lower shelf will not displace the book-end, but it is easy to displace the book-end by applying lateral pressure on the book-end at a level higher than the books (in the proximity of the grooves).

Each of the guide members may have two rollers which have vertical axes and are placed at the ends of the guide members. end will be particularly easy to carry out without an increase in the tendency of the lateral pressure of the books to displace the book-end, because this pressure will resuit in the rollers tilting in such a way that they will not have any tendency to roll.

Preferred embodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings in which FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a steel shelf with a bookend;

FIG. 2 a plan view of the book-end of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a plan view similar to that of FIG. 2 of an alternative embodiment.

In FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawing numeral 1 designates a steel shelf that at the front and back has portions 2 and 3 that form two opposing grooves. For a better illustration of the operation of the book-end according to the invention, a second shelf la is shown at some distance underneath shelf 1, with a book or other article, designated 20, standing thereon.

In the two grooves are placed guide members for a book-end that has a looped spring band 4 at whose ends cross pieces 5 and 6 are secured, each bearing two rollers,

Hereby the displacement of the book- U ice respectively 7, 8 and 9, it) that are disc-like and can rotate about vertical axes. Band 4 touches the book 2% with parts of its almost vertical side portions and with its substantially horizontal lowermost loop portion.

It should be noted that the downwardly extending limbs of band 4 are almost perpendicular to the surfaces of shelves 1, 1a. Particularly at the front of shelf 1 (that is, the left-hand side of FIG. 1), the band 4 is thus in close proximity to the portion 2 in which the rollers 7, 8 of cross piece 5 are slidable. Manipulation of the book-end is, therefore, both easy and efficient from the front side of the book-shelf.

The rollers may be made of plastic, e.g. Bakelite. These rollers constitute the book-ends guide members and are pressed resiliently into said grooves on the underside of the shelf. Lateral pressure on the looped band 4 in the proximity of the shelf 1 will cause the rollers 7-10 to roll or slide in the grooves. Lateral pressure on the lowermost portion of the looped band 4 will cause the rollers 7-16 and the cross pieces 5 and 6 to be pressed into an inclined position in the grooves in such a way that a very considerable frictional resistance against displacement will result, or complete self-locl ing will set in.

The invention also relates to a variant, shown in FIG. 3, in which the cross bar 6 is omitted and in which the flat disc-shaped roller d is rotatably seated on the end of a looped band 4a similar to band 4 of FIGS. 1 and 2. In this case it is advantageous that the distance between the axes of the rollers 7 and 8 on the cross bar 5 be relatively great, e.g. 40% of the distance between a line connecting the centers of the two rollers '7, i and the axis of the roller 9 at the opposite end of the looped band 4a.

What I claim is:

1. A book-end adapted to engage displaceably in grooves provided opposite each other on the underside of a first book-shelf, comprising at least one elongated, substantially flat guide member engaging in one of said grooves, and a downwardly projecting portion rigid with said guide member to support a book or the like on a second shelf mounted underneath, said projecting portion being in close proximity to one of said grooves on at least the frontal side of said first shelf, said guide member having a length that is between 30% and 40% of the distance between said grooves, so that lateral pressure applied to said projecting portion in a direction perpendicular to a line connecting said grooves, and applied just under said first shelf, will Cause lateral sliding displacement of the book-end without turning about a vertical axis, while similar pressure applied at the bottom of said projecting portion, in the proximity of said second shelf, will not cause lateral displacement thereof owing to excessive friction encountered between said guide member and the associated groove.

2. A book-end for displacement along the under side of a first upper shelf forming part of a book-shelf which also includes a second lower shelf, said first shelf comprising a pair of marginal rail portions therealong in spaced relationship, said b0ok-end comprising, in combination, a pair of guide members having marginal portions for sliding engagement with respective ones of said marginal rail portions, at least one of said guide members being elongated and substantially flat, and a downwardly projecting elastic portion for supporting books on said second shelf and biasing respective pairs of said marginal rail portions and said marginal portions into frictional engagement with one another, at least one of said guide members having a length that is at least a third of the distance between said marginal rail portions, so that lateral pressure applied to said projecting portion in the vicinity of said first shelf will allow the book-end to be displaced along said marginal rail portions without turning 3) about a vertical axis While similar pressure applied to said projecting portion in the vicinity of said second shelf will tend to produce self-locking between at least one pair of said marginal rail portions and said marginal portions.

3. A book-end according to claim 2, further c-ornprising at least one roller for at least one of said guide members, said roller having an axis substantially perpendicular to said shelves and being secured to the end of a respective marginal portion.

4. A book-end adapted to engage displaceably in grooves provided opposite each other on the underside of a steel book shelf, comprising an elongated guide member engaging in each of said grooves, a downwardly projecting portion to support a book on a shelf mounted underneath, and at least one roller for at least one of said guide members, said rollers having vertical axes and being secured to end portions of the respective guide members.

5. A book-end comprising a looped spring band, a cross bar fastened to said band at each end thereof and extending to both sides of said band in a direction at right angles to that of said band, a pivot at each end of said cross bars, the axes of said pivots being at right angles to the planes determined by the respective cross bars, and a fiat disc-shaped roller on each of said pivots, the edges of said rollers extending outwardly beyond the respective cross bars, and Wherein the distance between first pivots on one cross bar is at least One third of the distance between a first line connecting said first pivots and a second line connecting second pivots on the other cross bar.

6. A book-end comprising a looped spring band, a cross bar fastened to one end of said band and extending to both sides of said band in a direction at right angles to that of said band, a pivot at each end of said cross bar, the axes of said pivots being at right angles to the plane determined by said cross bar and the other end of said band, a first fiat disc-shaped roller on each of said pivots, the edges of said rollers extending outwardly beyond said cross bar in a direction away from said other end of the band, a solitary pivot on said other end, the axis of said solitary pivot being substantially parallel to said axes of the pivots on said cross bar, and a second fiat roller on said solitary pivot, the edge of said second roller extending outwardly beyond said other end of the band in a direction away from said cross bar, and wherein the distance between said pivots is between one third and four tenths of the distance between a line connecting said pivots and said solitary pivot.

References Cited by the Examiner FOREIGN PATENTS 2/61 Great Britain. 11/61 Sweden. 

1. A BOOK-END ADAPTED TO ENGAGE DISPLACEABLY IN GROOVES PROVIDED OPPOSITE EACH OTHER ON THE UNDERSIDE OF A FIRST BOOK-SHELF, COMPRISING AT LEAST ONE ELONGATED, SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT GUIDE MEMBER ENGAGING IN ONE OF SAID GROOVES, AND A DOWNWARDLY PROJECTING PORTION RIGID WITH SAID GUIDE MEMBER TO SUPPORT A BOOK OR THE LIKE ON A SECOND SHELF MOUNTED UNDERNEATH, SAID PROJECTING PORITION BEING IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO ONE OF SAID GROOVES ON AT LEAST THE FRONTAL SIDE OF SAID FIRST SHELF, SAID GUIDE MEMBER HAVING A LENGTH THAT IS BETWEEN 30% AND 40% OF THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID GROOVES, SO THAT LATERAL PRESSURE APPLIED TO SAID PROJECTING PORTION IN A DIRECTION PERPENDICULAR TO A LINE CONNECTING SAID GROOVES, AND APPLIED JUST UNDER SAID FIRST SHELF, WILL CAUSE LATERAL SLIDING DISPLACEMENT OF THE BOOK-END WITHOUT TURNING ABOUT A VERTICAL AXIS, WHILE SIMILAR PRESSURE APPLIEED AT THE BOTTOM OF SAID PROJECTING PORTION, IN THE PROXIMITY OF SAID SECOND SHELF, WILL NOT CAUSE LATERAL DISPLACEMENT THEREOF OWING TO EXCESSIVE FRICTION ENCOUNTERED BETWEEN SAID GUIDE MEMBER AND THE ASSOCIATED GROOVE. 